Algeria: Military plane crashes leaving hundreds dead

The exact number of casualties has yet to be confirmed, though Algerian state TV has reported at least 257 fatalities so far.Initial reports suggested around 100 passengers had died, though the figure has increased as more information becomes available.

Firefighters and civil security officers work at the scene of a fatal military plane crash in Boufarik, near the Algerian capital, Algiers, Wednesday, April 11, 2018.

Local media said 14 ambulances rushed to the scene and transferred injured people to hospital.

The military says it's not yet sure what caused the crash near its large airport in northern Algeria. Footage captured by witnesses showed a huge plume of black smoke billowing from near the runway.

It was the first crash of an Algerian military plane since February 2014, when a USA -built C-130 Hercules turboprop slammed into a mountain in Algeria, killing at least 76 people and leaving just one survivor.

According to local media, the Soviet-designed Ilyushin-76 plane was travelling to Bechar in the south-west of the country.

In October the same year, a military plane crashed in the south of the country during a training exercise, killing the two men on board.

The cause of the crash was unclear and an investigation has been launched, the defence ministry said. News website TSA-Algerie reported a provisional death toll of 105 from the civil protection agency.

Although unconfirmed, a few reports suggest 200 people were killed in the crash.

In February 2014, an Algerian Air Force Lockheed C-130 Hercules crashed in a mountainous area in eastern Algeria killing 77 passengers and leaving one survivor. Pilot error was blamed for the crash, in which 53 French citizens also died.

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